Fire guts south Etobicoke warehouse

A four-alarm fire at a south Etobicoke business gutted the building and left neighbours smelling smoke kilometres away early Friday.

The fire began at about 2 a.m. at Wei Fung Fruit Co., located at 99 Birmingham St., near 8th Street. The building is north of the intersection of Islington Avenue and Lake Shore Boulevard West.

The blaze started in a truck parked at the loading dock then quickly spread to the roof overhang and throughout the building. Owners of the building told CBC News they've been in business for 10 years.

A neighbour told CBC News his daughter heard a loud noise before the fire began.

“She was up by 2’oclock and heard a boom like a bomb,” the neighbour told the CBC’s Trevor Dunn.

Toronto Fire Service said there were no injuries in the fire, which was brought under control at 6 a.m.

“Smoke is still pouring out of this building and firefighters are high above it, dousing the flames with aerial ladders,” Dunn reported at 6:30 a.m. “There is a lot of damage here, it looks like the roof has collapsed and the building looks like a writeoff.”

The warehouse is adjacent to a Sikh temple and a four-storey apartment building.

"Firefighters worked hard to keep the flames off that building and it does look safe at this point," Dunn reported.

The fire sent a thick blanket of smoke throughout south Etobicoke, prompting many 911 calls.

As of 6:30 a.m., Islington Avenue was closed between New Toronto and Lake Shore Boulevard, as is Birmingham Street and 8th street.

UPDATE: Islington still closed from New Toronto to the Lake Shore because of a fire

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